


Starfyre

by AugustStories



Series: Howling at the Stars [34]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin
Genre: Andric would like a vacation, Bye bye Dragon Egg, Dragons, Jon is so happy, Meraxes the lizard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-22
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2020-05-16 12:32:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19318255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AugustStories/pseuds/AugustStories
Summary: An egg cracks and Starfall wakes to a dragon having been born. As the children rejoice, the grown ups try to figure out what to do now.





	Starfyre

“Papa, walk faster!”

 

They should have stopped at two, Prince Maekar thought to himself as he was pulled forward by two sticky hands, Daeron on one side, Aerion on the other, dragging him down the corridor, their goal clear. Two should have been enough but Dyanna had wanted more, so there they were again, and if the women were correct then it was another boy, and Dyanna wanted a girl.

 

So there would be at least one more.

 

And then some if his love was to be believed and she just knew too well how to get what she wanted from him. He had three brothers, she had five siblings, it was gonna get much livelier around here still.

 

“Papaaaaa!”

 

“I am walking, Rion,” he insisted and his six year old threw him a look over his shoulder, feisty this one already was, Maekar could connect far more easily with him than his bookish quiet firstborn. They took a left in the long corridors of Summerhall and the boys let go of his hands to rush forwards towards the half open door of his solar. Here on the other side of the castle the screams of Dyanna in the birthing bed were almost non-hearable and the boys had stopped being so squeamish about it.

 

He followed his sons into the solar and clicked his tongue to stop them pulling open the chest displayed at the back, under usual circumstances the chest only included one egg, Maekar's own, kept safe and close by because Maekar took tradition to heart and wanted to protect them. His wife didn't agree and the moment Daeron and Aerion had started fighting over their eggs, they had been taken away and placed in the chest as well. Dyanna didn't appreciate the dragon eggs at all, kept that opinion silent though, Maekar didn't see what her fuss was all about, those eggs would never hatch but laying a dragon egg into the cradle of a Targaryen prince or princess was a blessing.

  
It was status.

 

And Maekar had fought too long and too hard to get his respect in this family to not demand that blessing for his own children.

 

“Papa, can we see yours, too?” Daeron wanted to know when Maekar pointed them towards the settee at the wall, this was as good as any way to distract them from their mother's screams without sending them outside into the storms to play in the rain. Maekar wasn't beyond it, the boys weren't delicate flowers, a little rain and wind wouldn't harm them but Dyanna would have his head if she found out.

 

“You can see it if you don't fight,” he told them and retrieved the key to open the chest, he left the boys' eggs behind for now and only carried his violet egg over to them, carefully placing it down on Daeron's laps because Aerion couldn't hold still.

“Who chose the egg for you, Papa?” Aerion shot out his first question while his brother carefully cradled the egg in his hands, Maekar sat down behind his desk and reached for some letters.

“Your grandfather did. He chose violet because I was the first one of his sons who looked the Targaryen part fully,” Maekar explained and grimaced over Lord Baratheon's handwriting, it was the truth, simple as that.

 

All three of his older brothers had come after their mother in some way, only Maekar had been his father through and through, in at least appearance's sake. Not that it had mattered in the grand picture, his grandfather hadn't cared anymore at that point over his son's sons. Not when he had Daemon and Aegor, not when he had finally had perfect sons to boast about. All the more important had it been for Maekar's father to choose an egg that more than ever showed that he was the heir for the throne and not the toddler sitting on the King's knee.

 

And now... Aegon the Fifth was long dead, Daemon was dead two years, his family and Aegor banished from the Seven Kingdoms.

 

They had peace. For now.

 

And the future of Westeros, the future of the Iron Throne laid in the hands of Maekar and his brothers, of their sons.

 

Where Baelor and Jena had been smart enough to stop at two.

 

“How did you choose our eggs for us, Papa?” Daeron wanted to know next and Maekar was prepared for that one as well. He glanced over briefly to the chest where two eggs were nestled in velvet, so vastly different in appearance as his sons were in character. Quiet Daeron who got lost in his head, who spent his time preferring books over other people, a dreamer, even as a babe he had never gotten loud really, for him Maekar had back then chose a soft blue egg that had been as calming to look at as his firstborn son taking in the world around him with curious but dreaming eyes. And then on the other side Aerion's. That one struck you in its brightness, in the fire that seemed to burn in its shell. Just like his secondborn. Aerion was a bright boy, loud and fiery, he had a temper, always moving, too much energy, even as a babe he had screamed the castle down to get attention.

 

“They fit you.” He made his explanation short and then returned to his letters, for a moment silence lasted, his sons' quiet murmured conversation the only noise in the room and he was through three letters before Daeron addressed him again.

 

“Papa?”

 

“Hm?”

 

“I see someone riding a violet dragon but it's not you,” Daeron spoke up hesitantly and Maekar looked up from his letters, catching his son's eyes, “In my dreams, I dreamed about it. The dragon was huge but the man sitting on it wasn't you, he had your eyes but his hair was dark.”

“Dragons can take other riders if their first one dies,” Aerion chirped out completely unbothered and Maekar couldn't help but smile, death was still a concept that the boys hadn't fully grasp and he wished them that it would hold for a time yet. “Maybe Papa has a grandson later who takes his dragon when he's dead.”

 

“Boys, it's just an egg, no dragon. There haven't been real dragons in many many years, we have to make due with us,” he had just finished speaking as a knock sounded on the door and they all went silent. “Come on in.” The door opened to reveal one of his wife's maids, she curtsied an then smiled, Maekar felt immediate relief bleeding the low worry away that the morning and Dyanna's first labor pains had brought.

 

“You have a son, Your Grace.”

 

“Another one?” Daeron whined and Aerion punched him hard in the arm, Maekar waved the surprised blinking maid off and stood up to break off his sons. Please let this one be a quiet and patient one again, let this one take after father and not me. “But I already have a brother, I don't need another and Mama wanted a girl.”

“I think I rather want a dragon than another baby,” Aerion grumbled as Maekar pulled them to their feet and then towards the door to have the maid clean them up so they could go and see their mother without looking like hellions. “With a dragon you can do something, babies just poop.”

 

In the solar all that remained of the living was a violet dragon egg nestled into pillows.

 

\--

 

Eighty five years later that very same dragon egg laid broken in the low burning embers of a fireplace, shell pieces lying all around, small flames licking at it but causing no damage. Prince Maekar's beautiful egg was no more and would never be again, instead there now was a tiny but living dragon babe carefully clutched between the jaws of a dragon lizard who was climbing the bed of her Master.

 

Meraxes had long since grown tall enough to climb up onto Jon's bed without any help, only Ghost now remained down on the ground, whining and tail thumping against the ground. Her weight meant that Jon realized even in his dreams that something was happening and he slowly rose from his sleep to figure out what was going on, because despite being able to, Meraxes usually preferred to sleep by the fire.

 

“Mexes, go back to sleep,” he mumbled without opening his eyes as his hands touched the scales on her front legs that had climbed upon his thighs, and gods she was heavy now. “It's the middle of the night, I don't wanna play or cuddle now.” And then something got dropped onto his chest and Jon froze because whatever it was it was alive and wriggling around. “If I open my eyes and that's a rat again, I'm gonna ban you from my bedroom for the rest of my life. Think very well now, Mexes, do you really want to leave that on me?”

 

A tail hit his knee and Meraxes made that chuffing sound she usually only made when she wanted his attention. Jon groaned and reluctantly enough opened his eyes, he saw Meraxes first, towering over him, golden eyes awake and alert and focused not on him but on whatever was happening on his chest. Next Jon glanced down to where Ghost was trying and failing to get up onto the bed too, tail swinging.

 

And then, preparing himself for the worst, Jon raised his head a little and looked down at his chest.

 

A pair of eyes slow blinked back at him.

 

A pair of _wings_ flapped clumsily at him.

 

Jon reached down to pinch himself really hard but when nothing changed he slowly and carefully brought the same hand up to cup around the little creature still just looking at him. He twitched his leg and Meraxes got the message, getting off of him and patiently sitting down on the side of the bed so Jon could sit up. Still so incredibly slowly he carefully pulled the little thing into one hand, supporting the body with the other so he wouldn't fall.

 

“Hello,” he whispered and his eyes flickered over to the fireplace but all he found there was a cracked egg of which only the bottom half was still intact. “This... this is actually happening... you're real. Mexes, he's real!” He called out, still keeping his voice low in sheer astonishment, Ghost tumbled against the side of the bed again and Jon rolled his eyes. “Gimme a moment.” He set the baby dragon down onto his lap again and then reached down to pull Ghost up onto the bed. The pup crawled over him and then between Meraxes' front legs to curiously but also warily peak over to the new little addition to the room.

 

“I gotta show Papa.” Jon decided then and set the little dragon back into the bed covers before slipping from the bed, and for a moment then he stood in the middle of the room, not knowing what the best way was to go about it. Get Papa? Show Papa? Get Papa? Show Papa? His eyes kept on flickering between dragon and door until Meraxes took the decision from him and wrapped her tail around Ghost and dragon as she laid down.

 

Get a move on and get Papa, her look seemed to say and Jon stumbled towards the door.

 

\--

 

He didn't so much as knock on his Papa's door as he prevented himself from knocking it down and there was a grunt and then feet touching the ground. A moment later the door got opened and Jon blinked up at Aurane's sleepy disgruntled face for a second before he squished past him and stormed over to the bed where his Papa was rubbing a hand over his eyes.

 

“Papa, you have to come with me,” Jon called over to him and grabbed the sleeve of the night shirt, his Pa yawned and needed a moment to process Jon's words.

“Son, it's what.. not even the hour of the wolf yet, what could possibly be so important right now?” His Pa wanted to know and he dropped back into the pillows but Jon pulled only harder, causing his Pa to frown at him.

 

“Pa, he is here! You have to come with me, he is here!”

 

“What are you talking about?” Aurane asked as he returned to the bed, sinking down on the edge of it, his hair was all over the place and his eyes could barely remain open. “Who is here?”

“My dragon!” Jon beamed at them and grinned when his Pa was sitting in the next second and Aurane's eyes were wide open now, neither of them sleepy anymore. “The egg hatched! Mexes brought him to me! He is all violet like I saw in my dreams! And his eyes look like yours, Pa!”

 

He saw how his Pa and Aurane exchanged a look and in the very next blink of an eye Jon was being pushed back into the corridor and then up the stairs to the kids' corridor that was still quiet. When his half open door came into view, Jon skipped forward and right back to the bed where Mexes had laid down by now, Ghost curled up beneath her neck, both of them blinking over to him for a moment before starring back at the small form that had curled into a ball.

 

A ball that slowly moved when Jon crawled up on the bed and stretched out a hand, wings clumsily flapped as the little dragon hobbled onto his palm. When Jon looked back up, his Papa and Aurane were staring down at them with wide eyes and gaping mouths. “Isn't he beautiful? He looks just like I had dreamed.” Aurane made a sound that humans were probably not supposed to hear and then whipped his head around to stare at Jon's Pa who was too frozen to notice. “I am so happy he didn't hatch before I came back.”

 

“Andric is going to drop dead,” Aurane mumbled under his breath and Jon frowned at them, this was incredible and a dragon lived again, Uncle Andric would be happy, would he not?

“What's going on here?” A voice wanted to know from the doorway, heavy with sleep and Aurane stepped to the side, sank down on Jon's desk to drop his face into his hands, giving Jon a perfect view of Torrhen standing in the doorway with a hand rubbing over his face.

 

Also giving Torrhen a clear look of Jon and the new addition to the household.

 

Torrhen immediately dropped his hand back down again and blinked for a few seconds before he was rushing forward and throwing himself onto the bed, Shadow stumbling after him.

 

“Oh my gods, it hatched! It really hatched!”

 

And Jon grinned up at his cousin as the little dragon cocked his head to the side and observed Torrhen's excited bopping up and down.

 

\--

 

“Andric! Andric, wake up!”

 

Despite Arthur's hissed whisper, Andric woke up rather quickly and he blinked at Arthur through narrowed eyes but Arthur knew this was not something that could have waited until the morning. He made a few motions towards the corridor, dragon or not, Eyrin deserved her sleep in her condition, Andric grunted but started moving so Arthur slipped from the room again.

 

His brother stumbled into the corridor with wild hair and soundlessly closed the bedroom door behind himself, “this better be good or I will strangle you.”

“Just come with me,” Arthur grumbled because he was dead tired still, too, even when his mind was wide awake and half panicked by now. Jon's happiness was great but damn all the gods they had a problem now.

 

By the time they reached Jon's room, Rhaena and Edric had joined Jon and Torrhen on Jon's bed and all of them were crowded around the little creature trying at flapping his wings. Arthur couldn't believe what he was seeing, couldn't get a grasp on it, couldn't believe this was actually real, that his boy had managed to hatch a dragon without magic or sacrifice or anything. Just a quiet belief, just with the help of a very determined and loyal lizard who had watched over his egg most of all.

 

Andric froze one step into the room and under other circumstances Arthur would have found the utter blank shock on his brother's face amusing. Tonight it only worked in freaking him out more as he walked over to where Aurane was sitting on the desk still, eyes watching the children giggle over their new friend. Ghost was by now perched on his lap, really the only difference, Shadow was sitting on the chair, sharp eyes set on this unknown little thing on the bed.

 

“What the...” Andric broke off and didn't go through with whatever curse had wanted to fall from his lips there when all children looked up and over to him. “Am I awake?”

“Afraid so,” Arthur deadpanned and tried to smile when Jon frowned at him over the tone he used, “Just imagine this could have happened a few weeks earlier.”

“Don't even joke about it, Arthur!” Andric hissed at him and then twitched when Jon slipped from the bed, a dragon, an actual dragon carried in his hands.

 

“Isn't this great, Uncle?”

 

And Andric didn't know what else to do but squeak.

 

\--

 

By the time breakfast had come around and passed, the children were all crowded around the newest addition that Arthur and Andric had so far agreed to keep in Jon's room until they had anything figured out.

 

Arthur, Andric, Aurane, Ashara, Eyrin, Aemon and Richard were still sitting around the private family room, everyone still in various states of shock.

 

“Did you write Ally and Ben?” Ashara wanted to know and everyone looked over to where Andric was sitting in his armchair, bend over, hands in his hair.

“I did,” Andric answered, two grumbled words spoken into his knees, Arthur could see the wheels spinning and spinning in his big brother's head. Andric was thinking hard. “How did this even happen? How many decades have those eggs lain around in ruins and a dungeon without ever something happening?”

 

Underlying was the question of 'why did this have to happen in _my_ house?'

 

“I believe the boy has something that his ancestors did not,” Aemon spoke up for the first time really, he was the calmest among them all, Arthur was grateful for it. “It's been a long time since members of my family didn't see dragons as a means to further their power, as additions to their personal gain. Jon never saw dragons as weapons, he saw the dragon as his friend in his dreams. And as far as I heard from him and you all, he never tried to force it, he never even thought about it. It may be that the gods rewarded him for his devotion and his patience.”

 

“And what will we do now?” Eyrin asked the question that none of them had wanted to voice,” A lizard we could explain a way as an exotic pet from the years spent growing up in Essos. But a dragon? The boy's fake identity has Valyrian blood so watered down that we can't just give this away as random luck. The crown will demand answers if the dragon is seen.”

“How quick does a dragon grow?” Arthur wondered out loud, was there even a record left where they could find out something like that? Had any of the dozen of books that Jon had read over the years told him answers to question like that?

 

Meraxes had taken years to grow to the size she had now.

 

How old had the dragons been once when they had been big enough to be ridden?

 

How long would they have until this little dragon could no longer be contained within Starfall? The household here could be trusted but Starfall laid at a Torrentine harbor, the biggest of them all. Trade flowed heavily here into the eastern parts of Dorne. If so much as one sailor saw a dragon fly over the castle, they were in trouble.

 

“He will not grow to the size of the castle within days or even months.” Aemon could at least take that fear from him, “I do not know how quickly he will grow to a point where he can no longer be hidden but we do have time still.” Andric straightened up with a sigh and Arthur wanted to take some of the weight from his brother's shoulders, this wasn't just something he had to solve. They would come up with a solution together.

 

“Aurane, how good are your contacts to the Summer Isles?” Andric showed though that his head had worked quicker than others again even while still half in shock.

“As good as ever,” Aurane explained and blinked when he caught onto Andric's thoughts, “It's certainly an option but the Isles are far away and I cannot see Jon parting from the dragon easily. And... well...” but Arthur shook his head at him and squeezed his thigh to stop him, only positive ideas and thoughts were allowed right now, they could figure out the problems once they were no longer a breath away from freaking out.

 

“I just want the options right now.” Andric agreed with Arthur's unstated mood, “right now I just want options. I trust my household but I don't trust the traders coming into the harbor, and we can't control what they are saying and even less to whom. The good part is that trade into Dorne is still only allowed via sea, which means our borders are still controlled and I have it on good authority that Doran is not willing to change that anytime soon. The plan for now will be to keep the dragon inside Starfall, if he becomes too noticable we can find a watchtower. There are enough between here and Blackmont, close enough for Jon to get there by horse easily enough. And I'll talk to Jon about telling Larra the truth.”

 

“We got this.” Arthur said and Andric grimaced at him, “yay, dragon?” He tried because there was a part of him beneath the 'oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck' that was incredibly excited and couldn't believe that his boy had actually done it. A dragon, a real living dragon who would grow and learn to fly and learn to spy fire, who would protect Jon!

 

“Let's just hope the other eggs remain uncracked for now. I'd rather have a successful trial run first.” Andric grouched and he would play the 'why me, gods, why me' card for a few days still, he had done the same with Meraxes years ago and according to Eyrin he had done the same when the boys had written him about the direwolves. And like with Meraxes, Andric had quickly been won over by the pups as well already.

 

\--

 

“I named him Starfyre.” Jon declared when he was alone with his Pa later the same day, just the two of them in his Pa's room, Jon sitting with a sleeping dragon on the bed while his Pa sorted through some stuff. The castle had significantly calmed down again.

“Starfyre?” His Pa echoed the name and glanced over to him, nearly elbow deep in a chest, “That's quite... a name with Dayne history.” His Pa ended his sentence and Jon grinned, it was, it was indeed.

 

Samwell Dayne had been a King of the Torrentine and Lord of Starfall, a long long time ago before there had been dragons in Westeros, before even Nymeria had conquered Dorne. King Samwell had been nicknamed Starfire, and he had once sacked Oldtown. Now Jon didn't have anything against House Hightower, even though there had been a long running dislike between the Daynes and the Hightowers, but Samwell Dayne had been a well respected member of House Dayne.

 

“Aye, I'm a Dayne, am I not?” He wanted to know and judging by the way his Pa dropped whatever he had been holding and straightened up so very fast, maybe Jon should have had this kind of conversation with him earlier.

“You... yes, yes, you are, Jon.” His Pa finished with a lot more conviction than he had started and a bright smile, Jon mirrored that smile on his face happily.

 

“I have a direwolf, Ghost is the Stark in me.” Jon listed down and maybe he was wondering a little where the white bugger was at the moment, it was afternoon, Meraxes would be enjoying the sun down in the inner private courtyard. Maybe Torrhen had taken the wolves out. “I have a lizard, Meraxes shows where I first grew up. So now my dragon, that's the Targaryen in me but it's also the Dayne because I wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for you.” His Pa had walked down and had sat down on the bed next to him, his face soft and Jon liked it when he looked like that.

 

It meant something had made him very happy.

 

“Jon.”

 

“It's true.” Jon simply stated the fact, “I want to honor both sides, my Pa and my father.” It hadn't been hard to figure out that distinction in his head, and it had easily caught on with the others, too. Arthur was Pa, Rhaegar was father and Aurane was still Aurane but for Jon it meant a little something else now when he called him by his name. Aurane was no longer just an uncle. “Starfyre is the perfect name. And Rhaegar agrees.” And that brought his Pa up short because he blinked three times in quick succession.

 

“What?!”

 

“I've been dreaming of him.” Jon explained and smiled because it had been happy dreams, unexpected ones and he knew it was just some part of his mind that wanted a connection with the man who had died before Jon had drawn breath. “He helped me find the name in my dreams. He told me he is proud of me.” His Pa's eyes teared up a little but he also smiled big and drew Jon into a hug, careful of the napping Starfyre.

 

“Of course he is proud of you. And I can see him loving the idea of naming a dragon after a Dayne, he was always quite fond of us.” His Pa chuckled and Jon grinned, between them Starfyre slowly woke up.

 

It was the beginning of something very exciting.

 


End file.
